On Monday, Oct. 26, the University of Rochester’s Humanities Project in conjunction with the International Theatre Program will present a solo performance of The Sundance Kid is Beautiful, a rarely shown work by visual artist Christopher Knowles at 7 p.m. in Todd Theatre.
The performance is a culmination of a weeklong artist residency on campus where Knowles and members of his team will work with undergraduate students in studio art and theater to further develop sections of the piece that have previously been performed, in parts, at the Louvre in Paris and in New York City. New elements include a new dance sequence, design elements, and some additional material.
“His art has had a visible influence on American postmodern performance, poetry, and visual art since the 1970s,” said Lauren DiGiulio, a graduate student in Visual and Cultural Studies who helped bring the piece to Rochester. For the past three years, she has worked with Knowles and a team of six others to create the show.
“Historically, he’s known as a cult artist in either theatre, poetry, or art, and not for his entire body of work. What we’re doing with this performance is bringing all these fields together to show the depth of his work and that he’s an artist whose work should be taken on his own terms. He has a detailed mind that allows him to see things we typically don’t see.”
Knowles’ work first caught the attention of the art world in the early 1970s through his collaborations with artist Robert Wilson. His first exhibition as a solo artist took place in 1974 and since that time his work has continued to explore themes surrounding communication through text and patterns. His two and three-dimensional works are held in the permanent collections of the Museum of Modern Art, the Brooklyn Museum, the Museum Boymans-van Beuningen, as well as numerous other international institutions and private collections. However, despite the popularity of his work, he is often regarded as being an outsider whose work is explained through his autism.
“Through The Sundance Kid is Beautiful, we hope to present him as a multidisciplinary artist whose autism expands, rather than defines, his work,” said DiGiulio.
The 60-minute show includes Knowles’ alarm clock collection, recent sculptures, and a finely tuned lighting and sound design to convey measures of time, communication, and the popular culture.
“How we measure time and the frustration associated with having to conform to certain schedules, behaviors, and boundaries are themes explored throughout the piece that all people can relate to,” explains DiGiulio. “These are everyday struggles that are personal to Knowles and yet resonate widely.”
Knowles’ public performance on Monday, Oct. 26 is in Todd Theatre on the University’s River Campus and is free and open to the public. Seating is limited and tickets will be available at the door starting at 6pm the day of the show. Following the show there will be a discussion with Knowles and his collaborators moderated by Nigel Maister, the Russell and Ruth Peck Artistic Director of the University’s International Theatre Program. For more information visit, http://www.rochester.edu/college/humanities/events/2015/10/the-sundance-kid-is-beautiful-with-christopher-knowles.html.
